Lawrence E. Ritchie Lawrence E. Ritchie

“Wake-up call” for Australian Boards: Regulator identifies shortcomings in Bank’s practices

In the wake of the 2008 financial crisis and revelations concerning Wells Fargo’s sales practices, numerous reviews have been launched by...

U.S. financial industry “eagerly” awaits SEC’s best interest standard

While in Canada division continues over the issue of “best interest” in the financial advisory industry the U.S. national securities...

Compliance update – deferred prosecution agreements finally come to Canada

The Canadian federal government released Bill C-74 on March 27, 2018. Bill C-74 (a 500-page plus document) proposes amendments to several statutes to...

SEC announces $82-million in whistleblower awards

On March 19, 2018 the SEC announced its largest whistleblower award to-date, awarding $49,000,000 jointly to two claimants and $33,000,000 to a third...

Regulators on both sides of the border pursue initiatives focused on investment adviser conflicts of interest

On February 12, 2018, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced a new self-reporting initiative that seeks to protect...

U.S. Bancorp pays $613-million for deficient AML measures

On February 12, 2018, U.S. Bancorp (“USB”) – the parent company of U.S. Bank and the fifth largest bank in the United States...

Court of Appeal upholds significant OSC insider trading decision in Finkelstein

On January 25, 2018, the Ontario Court of Appeal released its decision in the high-profile Finkelstein v Ontario Securities Commission case,...

Oral summaries thwart work product protection: The case of SEC v. Herrera

In Securities and Exchange Commission v. Herrera, 2017 WL 6041750 (S.D. Fla. December 5, 2017), a U.S. Magistrate Judge in the Southern District...

OSC proposes changes to whistleblower program

On January 18, 2018, the Ontario Securities Commission (“OSC”) released for comment a proposed change to OSC Policy 15-601 -...

CSA Staff Notice highlights concerns with Registered Firms’ Complaint System

On December 7, 2017, the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) jurisdictions and staff of the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of...